Aug 24 Retail buzz

Icelandic online retailer AHA is claiming a world-first for its commercial drone-based delivery service. The 6.5 pound vehicle, developed by maker Flytrex, will make an initial 20 supply runs day – 2 miles from AHA’s Reykjavik HQ across water to a designated drop-off point – with that number set to rise to more than 100 in the short term.

The company has permission from the Icelandic Transport Authority to fly the drones along a route which is out of line-of-sight, and says it will likely be authorised to do drop-offs at customers’ premises within months. AHA says drone deliveries work out significantly cheaper than their road-based counterparts.

“We have seen a tremendous increase in our online delivery orders in recent months, especially our retailers’ products, and we expect to see this growth continue in the coming months as consumers experience the much faster delivery times Flytrex drone delivery offers,” says Maron Kristófersson, CEO of AHA.